Footwear, 1980–2003

The emphasis on business attire that went along with the 1980s trend for
"power dressing," or dressing for business success,
triggered a surge in the fashion for stiff, formal shoes. Men wore shiny
leather wing tips, oxfords, and other styles, and women wore pumps to
work. Some of these dressy styles were uncomfortable, and people soon
embraced new styles of shoes that were comfortable as well as fashionable.
Before the 1980s comfortable formal shoes were often only available in
styles suited to conservative, or reserved, old women and men, but with
the increasing interest in sportswear, fashion shoe manufacturers began to
combine comfort with style, making classically styled shoes with flexible
supportive soles.

The health craze of the 1970s that started people wearing jogging suits
and tennis shoes, even when they weren't exercising, continued into
the twenty-first century when people wore fashionable brand name trainer
shoes, tennis shoes, and sport-specific exercise shoes at the gym, at
home, and even at work. Trainer shoes became coveted fashion items for
young and old alike. By the 1990s more types of athletic footwear received
attention, and many young men and women began wearing hiking boots as
casual, everyday boots.

The past had a great influence on the footwear styles from the 1980s to
2003. Retro styles from the 1920s (T-strap sandals), 1960s (Birkenstocks),
and 1970s (platform shoes) have all reemerged on the feet of
fashion-conscious people. At the beginning of the twenty-first century
fashion had become a globally influenced industry, and footwear styles of
the West influenced those in the East and vice versa.